Interconnect structure and method of forming the same

ABSTRACT

A semiconductor device is provided. The semiconductor device can have a substrate including dielectric material. A plurality of narrow interconnect openings can be formed within said dielectric material. In addition, a plurality of wide interconnect openings can be formed within said dielectric material. The semiconductor device can include a first metal filling the narrow interconnect openings to form an interconnect structure and conformally covering a surface of the wide interconnect openings formed in the dielectric material, and a second metal formed over the first metal and encapsulated by the first metal to form another interconnect structure within the wide interconnect openings.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.62/448,788 filed Jan. 20, 2017, the entire contents of which isincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to semiconductor micro fabrication includingsystems and processes for patterning, deposition, and removal ofmaterials on a given substrate or wafer.

BACKGROUND

Semiconductor devices are widely used in various electronic equipment,such as smart phones, laptops, digital cameras, and other equipment. Ingeneral, a typical semiconductor device includes a substrate havingactive devices such as transistors, capacitors, inductors and othercomponents. These active devices are initially isolated from each other,and interconnect structures are subsequently formed over the activedevices to create functional circuits. Such interconnect structures mayinclude lateral interconnections, such as metal lines (wirings), andvertical interconnections, such as conductive vias or contact plugs.

There is an ever increasing demand for smaller and faster semiconductordevices which are simultaneously able to support a greater number ofincreasingly complex and sophisticated functions. This scaling downprocess generally provides benefits by increasing production efficiencyand lowering associated costs. Nevertheless, such scaling down has alsoincreased the complexity of processing and manufacturing of thesemiconductor devices. As dimensions of semiconductor devices scale tosmaller sub-micron sizes in advanced technology nodes, it becomes anincreasing challenge to reduce the interconnect structure resistancewhile decreasing the interconnect structure size. Improved structuresand methods for manufacturing same are needed.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, a semiconductor device can include an interconnectopening formed within a dielectric material. The interconnect openingdisclosed herein can have a trench opening, a via opening, or a dualdamascene opening. A first metal can conformally cover a surface of theinterconnect opening, and can either be in direct contact with thedielectric material, or in contact with a pre-deposited thin liner orbarrier material. The semiconductor device can have a second metal beingfilled in the interconnect opening as well. The second metal can beformed over the first metal and encapsulated by the first metal to forman interconnect structure within the interconnect opening. In someembodiments, the first metal can be conformally deposited in theinterconnect opening with a high aspect ratio and acts as abarrier/liner to the second metal. Aspect ratio herein means the ratioof a width to a height of an trench opening, or the ratio of a width toa height of a via opening in the interconnect opening. In an embodiment,the first metal can be ruthenium (Ru) that can provide a conformalcoverage in a trench opening or a via opening with a high aspect ratio.The second metal can have a lower resistivity than the first metal, butwould not be a suitable material for direct deposition alone due to anumber of possible reasons such as metal diffusion into the dielectricor electromigration (EM) concerns. In these cases, relatively thickliners and/or barrier films, for example several nanometers thick, wouldbe required for the second metal alone to be used. Incorporation thickliners and/or barriers to the metal stack often involves the fact that aresistivity of such suitable liner and/or barrier materials are over oneorder of magnitude greater than a resistivity of the bulk metal to beused. In some cases the metal selection of the first and second metalfills can be done such that the first metal does not require any barrierto the surrounding dielectric and has near-infinite lifetime such as Ru;and that the first metal itself, such as Ru, can act as a barriermaterial to the second metal which would normally have significantdiffusion into the surrounding dielectric if the second metal is usedalone. In an embodiment, the second metal can be copper (Cu), forexample. Hence, instead of requiring the use of high resistivity barrieror liner films, a lower resistivity metal such as Ru could be used as abarrier layer that actively is part of the interconnect structure. Inthe disclosure herein, metal filled in the trench opening becomes ametal line of the interconnect structure to provide a lateralinterconnection, and metal filled in the via opening becomes aconductive via to provide vertical interconnection in the semiconductordevice. The semiconductor device can further include a plurality ofconductive layers formed within the dielectric material, and theconductive layer can be at a bottom of the interconnect structure andcan be in direct contact with the interconnect structure. In anembodiment, the conductive layer can be a metallization layer in backendof line (BEOL) processing, such as Ru, for example. In anotherembodiment, the conductive layer can a conductive layer formed on a gateelectrode or can be a conductive layer formed on a doped substrateregion (e.g., a drain or source region). In various embodiments, theconductive layer can also be any conductive component in thesemiconductor device. The semiconductor device can further have a topsurface of the interconnect structure being lower than a top surface ofthe dielectric material.

In another aspect, a method for manufacturing a semiconductor deviceincludes forming a dielectric material, and forming a plurality ofinterconnect openings within the dielectric material. The interconnectopening can include a trench opening, a via opening, or a dual damasceneopening. The dielectric material can include a plurality of conductivelayers within the dielectric material where the conductive layer isformed at a bottom of the interconnect opening and is in direct contactwith the interconnect opening. The method can also include depositing afirst metal to fill the interconnect opening, depositing a second metalover the first metal to fill the interconnect opening and recessing thesecond metal. In some embodiments, the first metal can have a propertyto provide a conformal coverage in an opening with high aspect ratio,such as Ru, for example, and the second metal can have a lowerresistivity than the first metal, such as Cu, for example. The firstmetal can have a low metal diffusion and can be deposited withoutintroducing a pre-deposited barrier/liner between the first metal andthe surrounding dielectric material. The first metal can also act as abarrier/liner to the second metal. The method can further includedepositing a third metal over the first metal and the second metal tofill the interconnect opening completely in order to form a metal capover the interconnect structure to serve as a metalized low-resistivitybarrier material to the second metal. This cap would serve the functionof a metal barrier to prevent diffusion from the second metal up to thedielectric that can be subsequently deposited above the interconnectstructure that will provide insulation between adjacent upper and lowermetal layers, and can additionally provide better EM control for thesecond metal. In an embodiment, the third metal can be the same as thefirst metal, such as Ru, for example. The second metal can beencapsulated by the first metal and the third metal after the formationof the third metal. The method can include planarizing the semiconductordevice where a top surface of the dielectric material is level with atop surface of the metal filled in the interconnect opening. The methodcan further include recessing the metal filled in interconnect openingwhere a top surface of the metal filled in the interconnect opening canbe lower than a top surface of the dielectric material.

In another aspect, a semiconductor device can have a plurality ofinterconnect openings formed within a dielectric material. Theinterconnect opening can have a trench opening, a via opening, or a dualdamascene opening. A first metal can conformally cover a surface of theinterconnect opening, and can be in direct contact with the dielectricmaterial. A second metal having a lower resistivity than the first metalcan be formed over the first metal to form an interconnect structurewithin the interconnect opening. In the present disclosure, a topsurface of the second metal can be level with a top surface of the firstmetal. The semiconductor device can also include a plurality ofconductive layers formed within the dielectric material beneath theinterconnect structure and at least one of the conductive layers can bein direct contact with the interconnect structure. In the disclosureherein, a top surface of the interconnect structure can be lower than atop surface of the dielectric material.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Aspects of the present disclosure are best understood from the followingdetailed description when read with the accompanying figures. It isnoted that, in accordance with the standard practice in the industry,various features are not drawn to scale. In fact, the dimensions of thevarious features may be arbitrarily increased or reduced for clarity ofdiscussion.

FIG. 1A illustrates a schematically perspective view of an exemplarysemiconductor device in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 1B illustrates a schematic view of an exemplary semiconductordevice in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 2 through 13 illustrate exemplary schematic views of variousintermediary steps of manufacturing a semiconductor device, inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 14 illustrates an exemplary schematic view of an alternativesemiconductor device, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplary process flow for manufacturing asemiconductor device, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 16 illustrate a cross-sectional scanning electron microscope (SEM)graph of ruthenium (Ru) deposition by atomic layer deposition (ALD)process or by conformal CVD deposition process.

FIG. 17 illustrates cross-sectional scanning transmission electronmicroscope (STEM) graphs of similar Ru deposition by conformal CVDdeposition process.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following disclosure provides many different embodiments, orexamples, for implementing different features of the provided subjectmatter. Specific examples of components and arrangements are describedbelow to simplify the present disclosure. These are, of course, merelyexamples and are not intended to be limiting. For example, the formationof a first feature over or on a second feature in the description thatfollows may include embodiments in which the first and second featuresare formed in direct contact, and may also include embodiments in whichadditional features may be formed between the first and second features,such that the first and second features may not be in direct contact. Inaddition, the present disclosure may repeat reference numerals and/orletters in the various examples. This repetition is for the purpose ofsimplicity and clarity and does not in itself dictate a relationshipbetween the various embodiments and/or configurations discussed.Further, spatially relative terms, such as “beneath,” “below,” “lower,”“above,” “upper” and the like, may be used herein for ease ofdescription to describe one element or feature's relationship to anotherelement(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. The spatiallyrelative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of thedevice in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted inthe figures. The apparatus may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degreesor at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors usedherein may likewise be interpreted accordingly.

The invention relates generally to fabrication of interconnectstructures within integrated circuits, and more particularly, to using adeposition, recessing, deposition process to form an interconnectstructure including multiple metals. The interconnect structuredisclosed herein can have low resistance and good reliability.Techniques herein include structures and methods for fabrication ofsemiconductor devices. Such techniques can be applied, for example toback-end-of-line (BEOL) metallization steps for making interconnectstructures including a metal line and/or a conductive via. Oneembodiment includes a method of fabricating a metal interconnectstructure using ruthenium and a second metal deposition, such as Cu, forexample. The metal line can be comprised of Ru and a second metal, suchas Cu, fore example. The second metal, such as Cu, can be fullyencapsulated in a Ru metal line, and Ru acts as a barrier layer for thesecond metal, such as Cu. One advantage of techniques herein is that nobarrier/liner is needed between Metal-1/Via-1/Metal-2 (M1/V1/M2)interfaces. In other embodiments, a barrier/liner can be usefuldepending on a selection of the second metal.

In general terms, embodiments described herein provide for asemiconductor device having a plurality of interconnect openings formedwithin a dielectric material. The interconnect opening can have a trenchopening, a via opening, or a dual damascene opening. A first metal canconformally cover a surface of the interconnect opening, and can be indirect contact with the dielectric material. A second metal with a lowerresistivity than the first metal can be formed over the first metal andencapsulated by the first metal to form the interconnect structurewithin the interconnect opening. In the present disclosure, a topsurface of the interconnect structure can be lower than a top surface ofthe dielectric material. The semiconductor device can also have aplurality of conductive layers formed within the dielectric material.The conductive layer can be at a bottom of the interconnect structureand at least one of the conductive layer can be in direct contact withthe interconnect structure. As semiconductor devices continue to shrink,meeting conductivity requirement as well as reliability requirement ininterconnection structures of the semiconductor devices has becomeincreasingly more difficult. It has been observed that such aninterconnect structure disclosed herein may be scaled down for advancedtechnology node, such as 5 nm node and beyond, while still maintaininglow resistivity and good reliability. The first metal can have aproperty to conformally cover a surface of the interconnect opening toform a void-free lateral interconnections, such as metal lines(wirings), and void-free vertical interconnections, such as conductivevias, to improve the reliability. The second metal having a lowerresistivity than the first metal can reduce the resistance of theinterconnect structure. In related arts, a barrier/liner layer may berequired prior to the deposition of the first metal or the second metalin the interconnect opening. In current disclosure, the first metal orthe second metal can be formed without introducing the barrier/linerlayer. The first metal can be in direct contact with the dielectricmaterial without introducing a pre-deposited barrier/liner because thefirst metal has a low metal migration. The first metal can also act as abarrier/liner to the second metal. A fabrication process without thebarrier/liner layer disclosed herein can increase the manufacturingthroughput, and reduce both the manufacturing cost and the interfaceresistance between the first metal and the second metal and/or betweenthe first metal and the conductive layer.

FIGS. 1A and 1B show a schematic view of a semiconductor device 100,where FIG. 1A represents a perspective view of an exemplarysemiconductor device 100 with the dielectric layer 16 removed to viewinternal structure of the device, while FIG. 1B is a schematicrepresentation of the same semiconductor device 100 showing dielectriclayer 16. The semiconductor 100 includes dielectric material that caninclude a dielectric layer 10, a dielectric layer 14, a dielectric layer16, and a dielectric layer 22. The dielectric layers 10, 14, and 22 canact as a passivation layer or an etching/polishing stop layer. In someembodiments, the dielectric layers 10, 14, and 22 may be SiN, SiCN, SiC,AlO_(x), SiON or the like, or the combination, with a thickness, forexample, in a range from 20 Å to 300 Å. In some embodiments, thedielectric layer 16 can be an inter-layer dielectric (ILD), aninter-metallization dielectric (IMD) layer, a low-K material layer, orthe like, or a combination thereof. The thickness of the dielectriclayer 16 varies with the applied technology and can range, for example,from 1000 Å to about 30000 Å. In embodiment of FIGS. 1A and 1B, thedielectric layers 10, 14 and 22 are SiCN and the dielectric layer 16 isan ultra low-k material such as a material containing SiCOH.

The semiconductor device can further include a plurality of conductivelayers 12 formed within the dielectric material. In an embodiment, theconductive layer 12 can be a metallization layer in backend of line(BEOL), such as ruthenium (Ru) or copper (Cu), for example. In anotherembodiment, the conductive layer 12 can be a conductive layer formed ona gate electrode or can be a conductive layer formed on a dopedsubstrate region (e.g., a drain or source region). In variousembodiments, the conductive layer 12 can also be any conductivecomponent in the semiconductor device. In the embodiment shown in FIGS.1A and 1B, the conductive materials 12 is a Ru Metal-1 line.

The dielectric material in the present disclosure can include any numberof layers and, as described above, the dielectric material can bepatterned to form a plurality of interconnect openings. Shown in FIGS.1A and 1B, the interconnect opening can be a dual damascene opening andcan include a trench opening, such as 20 or 28, and/or a via opening,such as 18. It should be noted that the trench opening can have varyingfeature sizes, for example, the feature size of trench 20 being biggerthan the feature size of trench 28.

The semiconductor device 100 can further include a first metal 24 and asecond metal 26. Shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the first metal 24 can beconformally deposited in the trench opening, such as 20 and 28, and/orvia opening, such as 18, of the interconnect opening. The first metal 24can be in direct contact with the dielectric material withoutintroduction a pre-deposited barrier/liner because the first metal canhave a low metal migration. Still referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, viaopening 18 and trench opening 28 can be fully filled by the first metal24. While in trench opening 20 that has a bigger feature size thantrench opening 28, the first metal 24 can cover bottom and sidewalls ofthe trench opening 20, and the second metal 26 can be formed over thefirst metal 24 and encapsulated by the first metal 24. The first metal24 can act as a barrier/liner to the second metal 26. The first metal 24and the second metal 26 filled in the interconnect opening together forman interconnect structure where metal filled in the trench opening forma metal line of the interconnect structure to provide lateralinterconnection, and metal filled in the via opening form a conductivevia of the interconnect to provide vertical interconnection. In theembodiment shown FIGS. 1A and 1B, metal filled in via opening 18 formsan Via-1 structure and metal filled in trench openings 20 and 28 formsMetal-2 lines.

Illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the conductive layer 12 can be at thebottom of the interconnect structure and be in direct contact with theinterconnect structure through the metal in via opening 18. The firstmetal 24 can have a property to conformally cover a high aspect ratiofeature, such as via 18 or trench 28. As mentioned above, an aspectratio means the ratio of a width to a height of a trench opening, or theratio of a width to a height of a via opening in the interconnectopening. In various embodiments, the first metal can be ruthenium (Ru),copper (Cu), tungsten (W), aluminum (Al), or cobalt (Co). In theembodiment shown FIGS. 1A and 1B, the first metal 24 is Ru to provide aconformal coverage in a trench opening or a via opening with a highaspect ratio. The second metal 26 can have a lower resistivity than thefirst metal 24 to reduce the resistance of the interconnect structure,and the first metal 24 acts as a barrier/liner to the second metal 26.In the embodiment shown FIGS. 1A and 1B, the second metal 26 is Cu. Insome embodiments, the second metal 26 can also include Cu, coppermagnesium (CuMn), Al, W and Co. The semiconductor device 100 can furtherhave a top surface of the interconnect structure (e.g., a top surface ofthe metal 24) being lower than a top surface of the dielectric material(e.g., a top surface of the dielectric layer 22).

As dimensions of semiconductor devices scales to smaller sub-micronsizes in advanced technology nodes, such as 5 nm node and beyond, itbecomes an increasing challenge to reduce the interconnect structureresistance while decreasing the interconnect structure size. The reducedfeature size of the interconnect structure also brings challenges inreliability, such as electromigration (EM) and stress migration (SM) dueto difficulty to form void-free interconnect structures. In thedisclosed semiconductor device 100, the first metal 24 can beconformally deposited into the via 18, the trench 20 and the trench 28to form a void-free metallization layer, and the second metal 26 with alower resistivity than the first metal 24 can be formed over the firstmetal 24 and encapsulated by the first metal 24 to reduce the resistanceof the interconnect structure. Moreover, in present disclosure, thefirst metal can be formed without introducing a barrier/liner layerbetween the first metal and the surrounding dielectric material due tolow metal migration of the first metal. The second metal can beintroduced without a barrier/line between the first metal and the secondmetal because the first metal can act as a barrier/liner to the secondmetal. A fabrication process without the barrier/liner layer disclosedherein can increase the manufacturing throughput, and reduce both themanufacturing cost and the interface resistance between the first metaland the second metal and/or between the first metal and the conductivelayer.

In FIGS. 2 through 13, an exemplary technique of manufacturing thesemiconductor device 100 will be described with reference to exemplaryschematic views of the semiconductor device at intermediary steps ofmanufacturing. Beginning with FIG. 2, dielectric material can be formed.The dielectric material can include a dielectric layer 10, a dielectriclayer 14, a dielectric layer 16, and a dielectric layer 22. Thedielectric layers 10, 14, and 22 can function as a passivation layer oran etching/polishing stop layer. In some embodiments, the dielectriclayers 10, 14, and 22 may be SiN, SiCN, SiC, AlO_(x), SiON or the like,or the combination, with a thickness, for example, in a range between 20Å to 300 Å. For simplicity and clarity, in the present embodiment,dielectric layers 10, 14, and 22 is SiCN. The dielectric layers 10, 14,and 22 can be deposited through any of a variety techniques, such aschemical vapor deposition (CVD), physical vapor deposition (PVD), atomiclayer deposition (ALD), e-beam evaporation, and the like. Over thedielectric layer 10, another dielectric layer 16 can be deposited. Invarious embodiments, dielectric layer 16 may be a first inter-layerdielectric (ILD) or an inter-metallization dielectric (IMD) layer. Thedielectric layer 16 may be formed, for example, of a low-k dielectricmaterial having a k value less than about 4.0 or even about 2.8. Thedielectric layer 16 may be phosphosilicate glass (PSG),borophosphosilicate glass (BPSG), FSG (SiOF series material), SiOxCy,Spin-On-Glass, Spin-On-Polymers, silicon carbon material, compoundsthereof, and the like. The dielectric layer 16 can deposited through byany suitable method, such as atomic layer deposition (ALD), physicalvapor deposition (PVD), liquid source misted chemical deposition(LSMCD), spinning, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), coating or any otherprocess that is adapted to form a thin film layer over the substrate.The thickness of the dielectric layer 16 varies with the appliedtechnology and can range, for example, from 1000 Å to about 30000 Å. Forsimplicity and clarity, the dielectric layer 16 disclosed herein is anultra low-k dielectric material containing SiCOH. It should beunderstood that the dielectric material can include any number oflayers, such as isolation layers, glue layers, buffer layers, and thelike, depending on the technology requirements.

Still referring to FIG. 2, the dielectric material can further include aplurality of conductive layers 12 formed within the dielectric material.In an embodiment, the conductive layer 12 can be a metallization layerin backend of line (BEOL), such as ruthenium (Ru) or copper (Cu), forexample. In another embodiment, the conductive layer 12 can be aconductive layer formed on a gate electrode or can be a conductive layerformed on a doped substrate region (e.g., a drain or source region). Invarious embodiments, the conductive layer 12 can also be any conductivecomponent in the semiconductor device. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, theconductive layer 12 is a Ru Metal-1 line applied in BEOL. The Ru can bedeposited by any suitable method, such as an atomic layer deposition(ALD) process that can be performed in a temperature between 275° C. and400° C. using bis(cyclopentadienyl)ruthenium (RuCp₂) and oxygen asprecursors, or a thermal chemical vapor deposition (TCVD) process whichcan apply a process gas containing Ru₃(CO)₁₂ precursor vapor and a COgas. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the Ru is deposited through a ALDprocess.

As shown in FIG. 3, a hard mask stack can be formed over the dielectricmaterial. In the embodiment shown, the hard mask stack includes a SiOxlayer 30, a TiN layer 32, another SiOx layer 34, and a photoresist layer36, but other materials may be used. The SiOx layer 30 can have athickness in a range from about 100 Å to about 200 Å. The TiN layer 32can have a thickness between 200 Å and 400 Å. The SiOx layer 34 can havea thickness of about 300 Å to about 500 Å, according to technologyrequirements. SiOx and TiN layers disclosed herein can be deposited by asuitable deposition process, such as chemical vapor deposition (CVD),physical vapor deposition (PVD), atomic layer deposition (ALD), e-beamevaporation, or any combination thereof. The photoresist layer 36 can bepatterned according to any suitable technique, such as a lithographyprocess (e.g., photolithography or e-beam lithography) which may furtherinclude photoresist coating (e.g., spin-on coating), soft baking, maskaligning, exposure, post-exposure baking, photoresist developing,rinsing, drying (e.g., spin-drying and/or hard baking), and the like. Insome embodiments, the photoresist 36 can be a layer of photosensitivepolymer used to transfer pattern from mask (not shown herein) tounderlying substrate. In some embodiments, the photoresist layer 36could include multiple layers, such as underlayer, hardmask, bottomanti-reflective coatings (BARC), and other suitable materials accordingto the technology requirement.

In FIG. 4, a first etching process can be performed to etch the hardmask stack to form a hard mask pattern by using the patternedphotoresist layer 36 as a mask. Through the first etching process, aportion of the hard mask stack (includes layers 30, 32, and 34) that isexposed under a dry etching plasma or a wet etching chemical can beremoved, and a portion of the hard mask stack that is protected by thephotoresist 36 can remain. It should be noted that the first etchingprocess can selectively etch down through the dielectric layer 22 andstop at the dielectric layer 16. Upon completion of the first etching,the remaining photoresist 36 can be removed by, for example, a plasmaashing and/or wet clean processes, and the pattern generated in thephotoresist layer 36 can be transferred into the hard mask stack(includes layers 30, 32, and 34) as well as the dielectric layer 22 toform a hard mask pattern having trenches with varying size. The formedhard mask pattern can be used to form a trench opening of theinterconnect opening in the subsequent manufacturing steps. Illustratedin FIG. 4, trenches with varying feature sizes can be identified by acritical dimension (CD). For example, trench 44 can have a CD of T1, andtrench 46 can have a CD of T2 where T1 is bigger than T2. It should benoted that any suitable technique can be used to etch the dielectricmaterial and the dielectric layer 22. For example, in some embodimentsthe etching process may include dry etching (e.g., RIE or ICP etching),wet etching, and/or other etching methods.

In FIG. 5, another mask layer, such as a spin on carbon (SOC) layer 38can be coated and patterned over the formed hard mask pattern. SOC is anorganic polymer solution, which can be spin coated and baked at hightemperature, such as 350° C., to form carbon hard mask comparable to anamorphous carbon film produced by a chemical vapor deposition (CVD)process. Compared to the conventional CVD process, a spin-on processprovides lower cost of ownership, less defectivity and better alignmentaccuracy. In addition, SOC can provide good gap filling andplanarization performance for severe topography depending on the SOCmorphology and viscosity. The SOC layer 38 can be patterned according toany suitable technique, such as a lithography process (e.g.,photolithography or e-beam lithography) which may further includephotoresist coating (e.g., spin-on coating), soft baking, mask aligning,exposure, post-exposure baking, photoresist developing, rinsing, drying(e.g., spin-drying and/or hard baking), and the like. Shown in FIG. 5,the patterned SOC layer includes a plurality of contact holes 40 whichcan be used to form the via opening of the interconnect structure in thefollowed manufacturing steps.

FIG. 6 illustrates a second etching process to etch down (e.g., towardthe dielectric layer 10) into the dielectric layer 16 by using thepatterned SOC layer as a mask. After the completion of the secondetching, the pattern (e.g., contact hole 40) generated in the SOC masklayer can be transferred into the dielectric layer 16 to generate aplurality of contact holes 42. The contact hole 42 can further beextended to land onto the conductive layer 12 in the subsequentmanufacturing step to become a complete via opening of the interconnectstructure. Any suitable technique can be used to etch the dielectriclayer 16 shown in FIG. 6. For example, in some embodiments the etchingprocess may include dry etching (e.g., RIE or ICP etching), wet etching,and/or other etching methods.

Shown in FIG. 7, a subsequent plasma ashing and/or wet clean processescan be performed to remove the remaining SOC layer after the secondetching process. The removal of the remaining SOC layer wouldn't changethe patterns that are formed during the second etching process. Shown inFIG. 7, a plurality of trenches with varying feature sizes as well as aplurality of contact holes 42 remain in the dielectric material.

In FIG. 8, a third etching process can be performed by using thepatterned hard mask stack as a mask to complete the formation of theinterconnect opening having a trench opening, a via opening or a dualdamascene opening. During the third etching process, the exposuredielectric layer 16 can be removed partially according to the etchingprocess and a portion of the dielectric layer 16 covered by the hardmask stack (includes layers 30, 32, and 34) can remain. Once the thirdetching process is completed, the pattern generated shown in FIG. 7 canbe transferred into the dielectric layer 16. For example, the trenchpatterns 44 and 46 formed in FIG. 7 can be transferred into dielectriclayer 16 and become the trench openings 20 and 28 correspondingly. Itshould be noted that during the pattern transferring, the criticaldimension (CD) could be changed. For example, the trench pattern 44 hasa CD of T1 and the transferred trench opening 20 can have a CD of T3.The T1 can be bigger or smaller than T3 according to the etchingprocess. The contact hole 42 formed in FIG. 7 can be extended down(e.g., toward the dielectric layer 10) further to land onto theconductive layer 12 and become a via opening of the interconnectopening. The via opening formed after the third etching process can beidentified as 18, for example. It should be noted that during the thirdetching process, the hard mask stack can also be etched partially andthe dielectric layers 32 and 34 can be consumed fully. After the thirdetching process, only the dielectric layers 22 and 30 remain. Anysuitable technique can be used to etch the dielectric layer 16 shown inFIG. 8. For example, in some embodiments the etching process may includedry etching (e.g., RIE or ICP etching), wet etching, and/or otheretching methods.

In FIG. 9, a first metal 24 can be deposited to fill in the formedinterconnect opening. The first metal 24 can have a property toconformally cover an opening, especially an opening having a high aspectratio. In various embodiments, the first metal can be ruthenium (Ru),copper (Cu), tungsten (W), aluminum (Al), or cobalt (Co). In theembodiment of FIG. 9, the first metal 24 is Ru to provide a conformalcoverage in a trench opening or a via opening with a high aspect ratio.Due to low metal migration, the first metal 24 can be deposited withoutintroducing a barrier/liner between the first metal 24 and thesurrounding dielectric material. Shown in FIG. 9, after the depositionof the first metal 24, the via opening 18 shown in FIG. 8 can be fullyfilled and the metal filled in the via opening 18 can become aconductive via of the interconnect structure to provide verticalinterconnection. Regarding the trenching opening, there can be twoscenarios. The trench opening having a small feature size, such astrench opening 28 can be fully filled by the first metal. The metalfilled in the trench opening 28 becomes metal line of the interconnectstructure to provide lateral interconnection. However, the trenchopening having a bigger feature size, such as trench opening 20, cannotbe fully filled by the first metal 24. Illustrated in FIG. 9, the firstmetal 24 can conformally cover a bottom and sidewalls of the trenchopening 20 and leave a gap 20′ in the middle portion of the trenchopening 20. Shown in FIG. 9, it should be noted that after thedeposition of the first metal 24, a top surface of the dielectric layer30 can be uniformly covered by the first metal 24 as well. The firstmetal 24 can be deposited by a suitable deposition process, such aschemical vapor deposition (CVD), physical vapor deposition (PVD), atomiclayer deposition (ALD), e-beam evaporation, or any combination thereof.For example, a thermal chemical vapor deposition (TCVD) process whichapplies a process gas containing Ru₃(CO)₁₂ precursor vapor and a CO gascan be used to deposit Ru in the present disclosure. In the embodimentof FIG. 9, the first metal 24 is deposited by an ALD process. The ALDprocess disclosed herein can reduce metal migration which allowsdepositing the first metal into the interconnect opening withoutintroduction a pre-deposited barrier/liner. The ALD process can alsoallow the first metal to conformally cover the interconnect opening.

In FIG. 10, a second metal 26 can be deposited directly over the firstmetal 24 to fill the interconnect opening. As mentioned above, in thecurrent disclosure, the first metal 24 can act as a barrier/liner to thesecond metal 26. Therefore a barrier/liner is not needed between thefirst metal 24 and the second metal 26. In some embodiments, the secondmetal 26 can have a lower resistivity than the first metal 24 to improvethe conductivity of the interconnect structure. Shown in FIG. 10, afterthe formation, the second metal 26 can cover the bottom and sidewalls ofthe trench opening 20, as well as cover the top surface of thedielectric material. In some embodiments, the second metal 26 caninclude Cu, copper magnesium (CuMn), Al, W and Co. For simplicity andclarity, the second metal 26 can be Cu in the present disclosure toreduce the resistance of the interconnect structure and can be formedthrough any suitable deposition process, such as electrochemicalplating, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), physical vapor deposition(PVD), atomic layer deposition (ALD), e-beam evaporation, or anycombination thereof.

In FIG. 11, a first recessing process can be performed where the secondmetal 26 can be recessed by a selective dry etching process or aselective wet etching process. A selective etching process means thatthe etching process mainly etches the second metal 26 and attacks thefirst metal 24 very lightly. For example, a dry etching process thatapplies etching gases of Cl₂ and NF₃ can be used to etch a second metalmade of tungsten (W). Shown in FIG. 11, after the recessing process, theportion of the second metal over the top surface of the dielectricmaterial and the portion along the sidewalls of the trench opening, suchas trench opening 20, can be removed fully, and the portion over thebottom of the trench opening can be partially removed. After therecessing process, a plurality of gaps, such as gap 20″ in trenchopening 20, can be formed at the middle portion of the trench opening.

In FIG. 12, a third metal can be deposited over the first metal and thesecond metal to fill the remaining gaps, such as gap 20″ shown in FIG.11. The third metal over the first metal and the second metal to fillthe interconnect opening completely in order to form a metal cap overthe interconnect structure to serve as a metalized low-resistivitybarrier material to the second metal. This cap would serve the functionof a metal barrier to prevent diffusion from the second metal up to thedielectric that can be subsequently deposited above the interconnectstructure that will provide insulation between adjacent upper and lowermetal layers, and can additionally provide better EM control for thesecond metal. In some embodiments, the third metal can be different fromthe first metal or be different from the second metal. In otherembodiments, the third metal can be the same as the first metal. In theembodiment of FIG. 12, the third metal is the same as the first metal 24and can be conformally deposited to fill the remaining gap 20″ fullyshown in FIG. 11. After the formation of the third metal, the trenchingopening 20 in FIG. 11 can be fully filled and the top surface of thedielectric material can be uniformly covered by the third metal.Subsequently, a surface planarization process can be performed to removeany excessive metal over the top surface of the dielectric material.Shown in FIG. 12, the surface planarization process ends at thedielectric layer 22 which can act as a passivation as well as anetching/polishing stop layer. During the surface planarization process,both the dielectric layer 30 and any excessive metal over the topsurface of the dielectric material can be removed fully, and a topsurface of the dielectric material can be level with a top surface ofthe metal in the trench opening, such as a top surface of the metal 24shown in FIG. 12. In some embodiments, a chemical mechanical polishing(CMP) process can be applied to remove any excessive metal over the topsurface of the dielectric material. In other embodiments, an etchingback process may be applied to remove any excessive metal over thedielectric material.

Illustrated in FIG. 13, a second recessing process may be performed torecess a top portion of the third metal after the surface planarizationprocess according to the technology requirement. The recessing processcan be performed through a dry etching process or a wet etching process.Shown in FIG. 13, after the metal recessing, a top portion of the metal24 can be removed and a top surface of the metal 24 can be lower than atop surface of the dielectric material (e.g., a top surface of thedielectric layer 22) correspondingly. In some embodiment, the metalrecessing disclosed herein can reduce the parasite capacitance betweentwo metal lines filled in trench openings. In other embodiments, themetal recessing can provide space for the formation of other layersaccording to technology need. After the metal recessing, a completesemiconductor device 100 can be formed. The semiconductor 100 caninclude a plurality of interconnect openings formed within a dielectricmaterial. The interconnect opening can have a trench opening, such astrenches 20 and 28, a via opening, such as via 18, or a dual damasceneopening. A first metal 24 can conformally cover a surface of theinterconnect opening, and can be in direct contact with the dielectricmaterial. A second metal 26 with a lower resistivity than the firstmetal can be formed over the first metal and be encapsulated by thefirst metal to form a interconnect structure within the interconnectopening. Metal filled in the trench opening becomes a metal line of theinterconnect structure to provide a lateral interconnection, and metalfilled in the via opening becomes a conductive via to provide verticalinterconnection in the semiconductor device 100. A plurality ofconductive layers 12 can be formed within the dielectric material. Theconductive layer 12 can be at a bottom of the interconnect structure andcan be in direct contact with the interconnect structure through themetal filled in via opening 18.

In related arts, a barrier/liner layer may be required prior to adeposition of a metal to fill in the interconnect opening. In presentdisclosure, a metal, such as the first metal or the second metal, can bedeposited without introducing a barrier/liner because the first metalhas a low metal migration and the first metal can act as a barrier/linerto the second metal. A metal deposition without a barrier/liner layercan improve the manufacturing throughput, and reduce the manufacturingcost as well as reduce the interface resistance in the interconnectstructure. It should be mentioned that a barrier/liner can also beoptionally deposited prior to deposition of the first metal, prior todeposition of the second metal or the third metal, or be deposited ontop of the second metal according to the technology requirement. In someembodiments, the barrier/liner can include TiN, Ti, Ta, TaN, MnN, MnSiO,SiN, or the like, or the combination thereof.

Referring now to FIG. 14, an alternative semiconductor device 100′ isdescribed. Compared to the semiconductor device 100 illustrated in FIG.1B, the difference is that in semiconductor device 100′ the second metal26 formed over the first metal 24 can have a top surface being levelwith a top surface of the first metal 24 rather than the second metal 26being encapsulated by the first metal 24. In order to form thesemiconductor device 100′, the second recessing process illustrated inFIG. 13 can be adjusted to expose the top surface of the second metal 26and makes the top surface of the second metal 26 being level with thetop surface of metal 24.

FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplary process flow 200 for forming asemiconductor device 100 in accordance with some embodiments. Theprocess begins in step 202, where dielectric material can be formed. Thedielectric material can include a dielectric layer 10, a dielectriclayer 14, a dielectric layer 16, and a dielectric layer 22. Thedielectric layers 10, 14, and 22 can function as a passivation layer oran etching/polishing stop layer and may be SiN, SiCN, SiC, AlO_(x), SiONor the like, or the combination. The dielectric layer 16 may be a firstinter-layer dielectric (ILD) or an inter-metallization dielectric (IMD)layer. The dielectric layer 16 may be formed, for example, of a low-kdielectric material having a k value less than about 4.0 or even about2.8. For simplicity and clarity, the dielectric layer 16 disclosedherein can be a low-k dielectric material containing SiCOH. Thedielectric material can further include a plurality of conductive layers12 formed within the dielectric material and the conductive layer 12 canbe a metallization layer made of Ru in BEOL. The step 202 can beillustrated in FIG. 2.

Next, in step 204, a hard mask stack can be formed over the dielectricmaterial. Shown in FIG. 3, the hard mask stack can include a SiOx layer30, a TiN layer 32, another SiOx layer 34, and a photoresist layer 36.The photoresist layer 36 can be patterned according to a lithographyprocess.

The process flow 200 can then proceeds to step 206 where a first etchingprocess can be performed to etch the hard mask stack to form a hard maskpattern by using the patterned photoresist layer 36 as a mask. Shown inFIG. 4, through the first etching process, such as a dry etching, aportion of the hard mask stack (includes layers 30, 32, and 34) that isexposed under a dry etching plasma or a wet etching chemical can beremoved and a portion of the hard mask stack that is protected by thephotoresist 36 can remain. The first etching can further selectivelyetch down through the dielectric layer 22 and stop at the dielectriclayer 16. After completion of the first etching process, a hard maskpattern having trenches with varying size can be formed. The formed hardmask pattern can be used to form a trench opening of the interconnectopening in the followed manufacturing steps.

Subsequently, the process flow 200 proceeds to step 208 where a spin oncarbon (SOC) hard mask layer can be coated and patterned over the hardmask stack. The SOC layer 38 can be patterned according to any suitabletechnique, such as a lithography process. Shown in FIG. 5, the patternedSOC layer include a plurality of contact holes 40 which can be used toform the via opening of the interconnect opening in the followedmanufacturing steps.

In step 210, a second etching process can be performed to etch down(e.g., toward the dielectric layer 10) into the dielectric layer 16 byusing the patterned SOC layer as a mask. After the second etching iscompleted, the pattern (e.g., contact holes 40) generated in the SOCmask layer can be transferred into the dielectric layer 16 to generate aplurality of contact holes 42. The contact hole 42 can further beextended to land onto the conductive layer 12 in the futuremanufacturing step to become a complete via opening of the interconnectopening. The step of 210 can be illustrated in FIG. 6.

The process flow 200 then proceeds to step 212 where a subsequent plasmaashing and/or wet clean processes can be performed to remove theremaining SOC layer after the second etching process. The removal of theremaining SOC layer wouldn't change the patterns that are formed duringthe second etching process. Shown in FIG. 7, a plurality of trencheswith varying feature sizes as well as a plurality of contact holes 42remain in the dielectric material.

In step 214, a third etching process can be performed by using thepatterned hard mask stack as a mask to complete the formation of theinterconnect opening having a trench opening, a via opening or a dualdamascene opening. The step 214 can be illustrated in FIG. 8. During thethird etching process, the exposure dielectric layer 16 can be removedpartially according to the etching process and a portion of thedielectric layer 16 covered by the hard mask stack (includes layers 30,32, and 34) can remain. Once the third etching process is completed, thepattern generated shown in step 210 (shown in FIG. 7) can be transferredinto the dielectric layer 16. For example, the trench patterns 44 and 46formed in step 212 (shown in FIG. 7) can be transferred into dielectriclayer 16 and become the trench openings 20 and 28 correspondingly. Thecontact hole 42 formed in step 212 (shown in FIG. 7) can be extendeddown (e.g., toward the dielectric layer 10) further to land onto theconductive layer 12 and become a via opening of the interconnectopening.

The process flow 200 then proceeds to step 216 where a first metal 24can be deposited to fill in the formed interconnect opening. The firstmetal 24 can have a property to conformally cover an opening, especiallyan opening having a high aspect ratio. Subsequently, a second metal 26can be deposited over the first metal 24. Both the first metal and thesecond metal can be deposited without introducing a barrier/linerbecause the first metal has a low metal migration and the first metalcan act as a barrier/liner to the second metal. In some embodiments, thesecond metal 26 can have a lower resistivity than the first metal 24 toimprove the conductivity of the interconnect structure. The step 216 canbe illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10.

In step 218, a first recessing process can be performed where the secondmetal 26 can be recessed by a selective dry etching process or aselective wet etching process. Shown in FIG. 11, after the recessingprocess, the portion of the second metal over the top surface of thedielectric material and the portion along the sidewalls of the trenchopening, such as trench opening 20, can be removed fully, and theportion over the bottom of the trench opening can be partially removed.

The process flow 200 then proceeds to step 220 where a third metal canbe deposited over the first metal and the second metal to fill theremaining gaps in the trench opening. In the current disclosure, thethird metal can be the same as the first metal and can be conformallydeposited to fill the trench opening fully. After the formation of thethird metal, the trenching opening can be fully filled without any gapand the top surface of the dielectric material can be uniformly coveredby the third metal. Subsequently, a surface planarization process can beperformed to remove any excessive metal over the top surface of thedielectric material. The step 220 can be illustrated in FIG. 12.

The process flow 200 then proceed to last step 222 where a secondrecessing process may be performed to recess the top portion of thethird metal after the surface planarization process according to thetechnology requirement. The recessing process can be performed through adry etching process or a wet etching process. Shown in FIG. 13, afterthe metal recessing, a top portion of the metal filled in the trenchopening can be removed and a top surface of the metal filled in thentrench opening can be lower than a top surface of the dielectricmaterial correspondingly. After the second metal recessing, a completesemiconductor device 100 can be formed.

It should be mentioned that the same process flow 200 can be applied tofabricate the alternative semiconductor device 100′. In order to formthe semiconductor device 100′, the second processing process in laststep 222 can be adjusted to expose the top surface of the second metal26 and makes the top surface of the second metal 26 being level with thetop surface of metal 24.

It should be noted that additional steps can be provided before, during,and after the exemplary method 200, and some of the steps described canbe replaced, eliminated, or moved around for additional embodiments ofthe method 200. In subsequent process steps, various additionalinterconnect structures (e.g., metallization layers having conductivelines and/or vias) may be formed over the dielectric layer 22. Suchinterconnect structure electrically connect the semiconductor device 100with other contact structures and/or active devices to form functionalcircuits. Additional device features such as passivation layers,input/output structures, and the like may also be formed.

FIG. 16 illustrates a cross-sectional scanning electron microscope (SEM)graph of ruthenium (Ru) deposition by atomic layer deposition (ALD)process or conformal chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process, accordingto embodiments in the present disclosure. In FIG. 16, an upper portionshows a formation of Ru through a conformal CVD process operated at apressure of 15 millitorr and a lower portion shows a Ru formationthrough a conformal CVD process at a pressure of 10 millitorr. In bothconditions, Ru can conformally cover a surface of a trench opening witha big feature size, for example a trench opening located at left end,and can completely fill a trench opening with a small feature size, forexample a trench opening located at right end. The similar process canbe applied in the present disclosure shown in FIG. 9.

FIG. 17 illustrates cross-sectional scanning transmission electronmicroscope (STEM) graphs of similar Ru deposition by conformal CVDprocess. In FIG. 17, a so called “bottom up” deposition process isillustrated. Shown in graph on left, firstly a 30 Å Ru is deposited intoan via opening through a CVD process, and a STEM image shows that thedeposited Ru conformally covers sidewalls and bottom of the via opening.Shown in graph in middle, the deposition continues and a 100 Å Ru now isdeposited into the via opening. A STEM image shows that most part of thevia opening is now filled by Ru. Shown in graph on right, the depositionends in coating 150 Å Ru into the via opening, and the via opening isfully filled without any void or defect. In addition, the formed Rucovers a top surface of dielectric material within which the via openingis formed. A followed elemental analysis (not shown) through EnergyDispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDX) verifies that the Ru fills the viaopening completely without any void or defect. It should be mentionedthat, a TaN barrier layer deposited through an ALD process is applied inexperiments illustrated in FIG. 17. As mentioned above, a barrier/linercan be skipped or be applied according to technology need.

FIGS. 16 and 17 shows a conformal Ru deposition process throughconformal CVD technology which can be utilized in the presentdisclosure. The Ru deposition process disclosed herein can provide aconformal coverage in an opening feature with a high aspect ratio. TheRu deposition disclosed herein can also reduce the metal migration whichallows skipping a barrier/liner during the manufacturing.

With respect to the description provided herein, the present disclosureoffers methods and structures for forming a semiconductor device whichprovides several benefits as the semiconductor devices shrinks toadvanced technology node, such as 5 nm node and beyond. Thesemiconductor device in the present disclosure can meet both theconductivity and reliability requirements in advanced technology nodes.Embodiments of the present disclosure advantageously provide asemiconductor device having a plurality of interconnect openings formedwithin a dielectric material. In the interconnect structure disclosedherein, a first metal layer can conformally cover the surface of theinterconnect opening, and can be in direct contact with the dielectricmaterial due to low metal migration. In addition, the first metal canact as a barrier/liner to the second metal. The second metal layer witha lower resistivity than the first metal can be formed over the firstmetal directly and encapsulated by the first metal to form aninterconnect structure in the interconnect opening. Metal filled in thetrench opening can be a metal line of the interconnect structure andmetal filled in the via opening can be a conductive via of theinterconnect structure. The first metal can have a property toconformally cover an interconnect opening with a high aspect ratio toform a void-free lateral interconnections, such as metal lines(wirings), and void-free vertical interconnections, such as conductivevias, to improve the reliability. The second metal having a lowerresistivity than the first metal can reduce the resistivity of theinterconnect structure. In related arts, a barrier/liner layer may berequired prior to the deposition of the first metal or the second metalin the interconnect structure. In current disclosure, the first metal orthe second metal can be formed without introducing the barrier/linerlayer. A fabrication process without the barrier/liner layer disclosedherein can improve the manufacturing throughput, and reduce both themanufacturing cost and the interface resistance between the first metaland the second metal and/or between the first metal and the conductivelayer.

The foregoing outlines features of several embodiments so that thoseskilled in the art may better understand the aspects of the presentdisclosure. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they mayreadily use the present disclosure as a basis for designing or modifyingother processes and structures for carrying out the same purposes and/orachieving the same advantages of the embodiments introduced herein.Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalentconstructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the presentdisclosure, and that they may make various changes, substitutions, andalterations herein without departing from the spirit and scope of thepresent disclosure.

1: A semiconductor device, comprising: a substrate including dielectricmaterial; a plurality of narrow interconnect openings formed within saiddielectric material; a plurality of wide interconnect openings formedwithin said dielectric material; a first metal filling the narrowinterconnect opening fully to form an interconnect structure andconformally covering a surface of the wide interconnect opening formedin the dielectric material; and a second metal formed over the firstmetal and encapsulated by the first metal to form another interconnectstructure within the wide interconnect opening. 2: The semiconductordevice of claim 1, wherein the narrow interconnect opening and the wideinterconnect opening comprise a trench opening, a via opening, or a dualdamascene opening, a critical dimension of the trench opening in thenarrow interconnect opening being about 20 nm or less, and a criticaldimension of the trench opening in the wide interconnect opening beingapproximately twice as wide as the critical dimension of the trenchopening in the narrow interconnect opening. 3: The semiconductor deviceof claim 1, wherein the first metal comprises Ru, Cu, W, Al, or Co, andis direct contact with the dielectric material, and acts as abarrier/liner to the second metal. 4: The semiconductor device of claim1, wherein the second metal comprises Cu, Mn, Al, W and Co, and thesecond metal has a lower resistivity than the first metal. 5: Thesemiconductor device of claim 1, further comprising a plurality ofconductive layers formed within the dielectric material, the conductivelayer being at a bottom of the interconnect structure, and at least oneof the conductive layers being in direct contact with the interconnectstructure. 6: The semiconductor device of claim 5, wherein theconductive layer comprise Ru, Cu, W, Al, or Co. 7: The semiconductordevice of claim 1, wherein the dielectric material comprises at leastone of an inter-layer dielectric (ILD) layer, an inter-metallizationdielectric (IMD) layer and a low-K material layer. 8: The semiconductordevice of claim 1, wherein a top surface of the interconnect structureis lower than a top surface of the dielectric material. 9: Thesemiconductor device of claim 1, wherein the first metal is in directcontact with the dielectric material, and a top surface of the secondmetal is level with a top surface of the first metal. 10: A method forfabricating a semiconductor device, the method comprising: providing adielectric material on a substrate; forming a plurality of narrowinterconnect openings and a plurality of wide interconnect openingswithin the dielectric material; depositing a first metal to fill in thenarrow interconnect opening fully, and depositing the first metal toconformally cover a surface of the wide interconnect opening; depositinga second metal over the first metal to fill the wide interconnectopening; recessing the second metal within the wide interconnectopening; depositing a third metal over the first metal and the secondmetal to fill the wide interconnect opening completely; and planarizingthe semiconductor device wherein a top surface of the dielectricmaterial is level with a top surface of the third metal. 11: The methodof claim 10, further comprising recessing the third metal wherein a topsurface of the third metal in the wide interconnect opening is lowerthan a top surface of the dielectric material. 12: The method of claim10, wherein forming the dielectric material comprises forming aplurality of conductive layers within the dielectric material. 13: Themethod of claim 12, wherein forming the conductive layer within thedielectric material comprises forming the conductive layer at a bottomof the interconnect opening, at least one of the conductive layers beingin direct contact with metal filled in the interconnect opening. 14: Themethod of claim 10, wherein forming the narrow interconnect opening andthe wide interconnect opening comprises forming a trench opening, a viaopening, or a dual damascene opening, a critical dimension of the trenchopening in the narrow interconnect opening being about 20 nm or less,and a critical dimension of the trench opening in the wide interconnectopening being approximately twice as wide as the critical dimension ofthe trench opening in the narrow interconnect opening. 15: The method ofclaim 10, wherein forming the interconnect opening within the dielectricmaterial comprises: forming a hard mask stack over the dielectricmaterial; performing a first etching process to etch the hard mask stackto form a hard mask pattern; coating a spin on carbon (SOC) hard masklayer over the patterned hard mask stack and patterning the SOC layer;performing a second etching process to etch down into the dielectricmaterial by using the patterned SOC layer as a mask; removing the SOClayer; and performing a third etching process to etch down into thedielectric material by using the patterned hard mask stack as a mask tocomplete the formation of the interconnect opening having a trenchopening, a via opening or a dual damascene opening. 16: The method ofclaim 10, wherein depositing the second metal over the first metalincludes depositing the second metal over a top surface of thedielectric material, over a bottom of the trench in the wideinterconnect opening, and along sidewalls of the trench in the wideinterconnect opening. 17: The method of claim 10, wherein recessing thesecond metal comprising fully removing portion over the top surface ofthe dielectric material and portion along the sidewalls of the trench inthe wide interconnect opening, and partially removing portion over thebottom of the trench in the wide interconnect opening. 18: The method ofclaim 10, wherein depositing the third metal comprising deposing thesame metal as the first metal. 19: The method of claim 10, furthercomprising encapsulating the second metal with the first metal and thethird metal, the second metal being formed over the first metal andbeing covered by the third metal in the wide interconnect opening. 20:The method of claim 10, wherein deposing the first metal comprisesdepositing the first metal through either an atomic layer deposition(ALD) process or a conformal CVD process, the first metal conformallycovering the surface of the interconnect opening, being in directcontact with the dielectric material, and acting as a barrier/liner tothe second metal.